‘Accident’ turns out to be planned murder of Indian

Dubai, July 16 (IANS) What was initially believed to be a hit-and-run accident that claimed the life of an Indian here has turned out to be a well-planned murder. The police in Dubai arrested two Asians, one of them an Iranian, on charges of murdering Sharjah-based Indian businessman Shameer Musa.

Musa’s body was found lying on a road in the Ras Al Khor locality here July 6. The police initially believed that he had died in a hit-and-run incident.

However, the police became suspicious when they realised that the victim’s body was lying barely 1,500 metres from the Dubai Islamic Bank where Musa had withdrawn 329,000 dirhams ($89,000).

Only 10,000 dirhams ($2,723) was recovered from his wallet and his car was also missing from the spot.

“The accident also appeared strange, as we questioned how the victim could step out of his car in the middle of the road and get run over. His body was found 1,500 metres away from the bank and two km away from his workplace,” reports here quoted Col. Khalil Ebrahim Al Mansouri, deputy director of Dubai Police’s Criminal Investigation Department (CID), as saying.

According to the reports, the two suspects had followed Musa, a fuel trader, to the bank when he went to make the withdrawal. While one sat in a white SUV outside, the Iranian went inside the bank to monitor Musa’s transaction.

When Musa came out and sat in his sedan, the two suspects rammed their SUV into his car from behind.

As he emerged from the car to assess the damage, the duo ran their car over him, reports here quoted the police as saying.

After eyewitnesses told the police about seeing two men in a white SUV, Dubai Police made a special task force and sent out 60 teams all over Dubai and Sharjah.

Musa’s dented sedan was found abandoned in a deserted area in Sharjah.

It has now been found that after the incident, while one of the suspects fled in the victim’s car, the other left the spot in the SUV.

The police checked over 2,800 vehicles resembling the SUV used by the suspects. Finally at 7 p.m. Sunday, a police officer monitoring banks saw the Iranian driving the car.

The man was arrested and a huge amount of cash was seized from him, the police said. It was also found that the SUV had been stolen from another Indian who had not reported the theft.

The police said the Iranian had confessed to the murder, after which his partner - also a neighbour - was arrested.